1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to systems and methods for protecting vehicle occupants from injury. More specifically, the present invention relates to an apparatus and method for facilitating the deployment of an overhead airbag module.
2. Description of Related Art
Inflatable airbags are well accepted for use in motor vehicles and have been credited with preventing numerous deaths and injuries. Some statistics estimate that frontal airbags reduce the fatalities in head-on collisions by 25% among drivers using seat belts and by more than 30% among unbelted drivers. Statistics further suggest that with a combination of a seat belt and an airbag, serious chest injuries in frontal collisions can be reduced by 65% and serious head injuries by up to 75%. Airbag use presents clear benefits and vehicle owners are frequently willing to pay the added expense for airbags.
The inclusion of inflatable safety restraint devices, or airbags, is now a legal requirement for many new vehicles. Airbags are typically installed in the steering wheel and in the instrument panel on the passenger side of a car. In the event of an accident, an accelerometer within the vehicle measures the abnormal deceleration and triggers the ignition of an explosive charge. Expanding gases from the charge fill the airbags, which immediately inflate in front of the driver and passenger to protect them from impact against the windshield or instrument panel.
Airbag apparatuses have been primarily designed for deployment in front an occupant's torso, between the torso and the instrument panel. Conventional airbags, such as driver's side or passenger's side airbags protect the occupant's upper torso and head from colliding with a windshield or instrument panel. Such conventional airbag modules for frontal occupant protection deploy from the instrument panel or the steering wheel. This location has several disadvantages including poor protection for out-of-position (OOP) occupants and unaesthetic tear seams on the instrument panel or steering wheel.
Overhead airbags have been produced in an attempt to provide better protection for out-of-position vehicle occupants and avoid the necessity of installing airbags in the vehicle instrument panel. Unfortunately, known overhead airbags also have a number of disadvantages. Many are somewhat difficult to install because they require extensive modification of the vehicle roof. Some tend to deploy in such a manner that roof elements, such as the headliner or sun visor, are propelled toward the vehicle occupant or in a direction in which they can impede inflation of the airbag cushion.
Consequently, it would be an advancement in the art to provide an overhead airbag assembly that can be easily installed in a vehicle, with only limited modification of existing roof elements. Furthermore, it would be an advancement in the art to provide an overhead airbag assembly that permits rapid and unimpeded deployment of the airbag cushion without permitting roof elements to strike the vehicle occupant. Yet further, it would be an advancement in the art to provide an overhead airbag assembly that is inexpensive and readily adaptable to multiple vehicle and cushion types.